Bat Girl!

Oops, I couldn't figure out how to rotate this photo...but if you turn your head to the right you can see the individual with whom Simon and I shared our first night in our/her new home! Soon after I turned the light out to go to sleep, the little missus began flying around. I couldn't just open the door for her to fly out b/c I didn't want Simon to go outside at night in a place he was not familiar with. Soooooooo, I put Simon's harness on him in the middle of the night, tied it to my finger cuz I wasn't sure I could keep myself awake till the bat flew out and opened the door as wide as possible. I remember waking back up at some juncture and realizing the bat had left. I closed the door, unharnessed Simon and konked back out. I must say it was a rather event-full first night and I am hoping tonight is less so!

Pinch Me!!!

This is taken just a minute or so from my new driveway!!!
I can't even believe how lucky I am. That's the Pacific ocean in the background...
More later as moving day tuckered me out.
I am very excited to wake up!!!

Bedtime Lullabies

It is rarely warm enough here at night to wear one's birthday suit outside. Last night, however, was an exception. So, late at night I walked outside to look at a sky full, full, full of stars...and as I was looking up a movement caught in my peripheral vision. I looked towards the movement and at first thought it might be Simon but quickly realized it was not. I had to do that night thing where you don't look directly at the object but rather at its field which is what I did and recognized that it was our fox neighbor tiptoeing around just outside my little yard. I think it found me through scent rather than sight and when it did, it made a u turn and quietly disappeared. Gosh, their energy is lovely to be around...very much a presence that is both strong and soft. Anyways, I continued to look at stars till I couldn't stay awake any more and put myself to bed. I remember falling asleep hearing both the fox and great horned owl voices.
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When I was out last night I was talking to several plants telling them I was going to transplant them today and that I would do it as early as I could cuz it was going to be a hot day, etc.
Then I walked over to the little patch of just getting ready to bloom cosmos...I asked them if just one of them could bloom before I have to go and sure enough this morning one beauty-full orange face was smiling in the sun!

Farewell Beauty-full Spot On The Planet...

Bath Day!

As I was letting the tub fill with water I was holding Edward and Hershe down so their bodies would absorb the moisture. However, I made sure their little faces didn't get wet! It's true. Though I am mostly a grown up person, I stood there and told them not to worry, I wouldn't let them get water in their eyes or mouth. Awhile later a friend came over to help me move. She walked into the bathroom and startled at the bears in the tub and then proceeded to tell me the sweetest stories of how she would talk to her stuffed animals as a kid. I knew immediately she was the one to finish giving them a bath. When I told her to make sure not to put their heads under water she looked at me and said: "of course not" as if that were an absurd thing to even think she might!
That was a few days ago and Edward (his friends call him Pooh) is still fairly wet and oddly shaped. Perhaps once he thoroughly dries I can reconfigure his figure and sew up the joints that got torn from the bath. Bathing the elderly is a delicate matter.

Am I A Gay Man?

I have this very strong desire to decorate and beautify my storage locker...

Jackpot

One of my favorite finds here on the property is a book called: Seth Parker's Hymnal. It has the smell of a book that has been a shut in for a long, long time and there is a small section on the front cover where a mouse, perhaps a religious one, chewed. The hymnal is full of ambiance both inside and out.
The introductory page reads like this:

Dear Folks,
I've had a real good time getting these old hymns together and I hope you enjoy singing them as much as we do.

You'll find in the book here most of the old tunes,  but of course there'll be a couple now and then that you'll think ought to be in, but aren't. Now if I was suggesting I'd say to kick just about enough to get a dollar's worth of enjoyment out of it, but not so much so you won't enjoy the other tunes that you do find. Some folks try to get a twenty dollar kicking license out of just one dollar, but of course that isn't in proportion.

One thing about singing these old tunes is they make everybody feel as if they were neighbors. A neighbor is a man, you know, who tries to make living a mite more fun for everybody and when a man gets feeling this way he's pretty sure to catch religion. One thing to remember, though, is that if you're a neighbor it doesn't make much difference what color the church is painted that the other neighbor goes to. If he's a good neighbor you can feel sure he's got a pretty good religion, too. The proof of the tree is the taste of the apples.

Most cordial.
Seth Parker